Briquette making: How to make cash from cow dung

Everybody is so busy on this farm, if you come with an agenda like conducting an interview, it is clear you are wasting their precious money-making time.

On this bright day, Smart Harvest is at briquette processing factory in Dunga village, Kisumu County.

Here, briquettes are processed from cow dung and later sold to individuals and institutions keen on using clean energy. 

While some workers are collecting cow dung supplied by various farmers from the locality, others are busy loading containers with the same, for processing. 

CREATE JOBS

Ms Kalpana Karia, the briquette projects coordinator, says the Sh60 million factory was established three years ago to help create a source of employment for the locals who have been struggling to meet daily milk production targets.

Karia says a team investors came together and crafted the idea to establish the factory for making briquettes in order to create jobs for youth and alleviate poverty in the area.

“We are aware that the poverty levels are high here. People are struggling to eke out a living.

“With this company, we are able to create a source of livelihood for them.

“The locals bring cow dung and we pay them. The cow dung is used to make briquettes,” Karia says.

She says they pay Sh300 for a wheelbarrow-full of cow dung, on delivery.

So far, the project has transformed the lives of several hitherto poor farmers.

To educate the locals on the opportunities, the investors normally hold forums to explain how the system works and the potential it has.

“Through this value-addition project, we are showing the locals that dairy cattle should not only be kept for milk.

“By supplying cow dung to us, they are able to make an extra coin,” she says.

FARMERS’ VIEWS

One of people who have enjoyed the benefits of this business is Mary Anyango, a dairy farmer.

She used to struggle to meet her milk targets, but she can now make more cash from selling cow dung.

“My cows hardly produced enough milk which means I was making very little from selling milk.

“But now things are better because I can sell cow dung and make more money. Now I am challenged to feed my cows more so that they can produce more dung,” she says.

More dung more money

Anyango says her fortunes have changed.

“I never knew I would make money from this waste.

“Before I would use the manure on my farm. But now I am earning cash from it thanks to the factory,” she says.

Even Joseph Okello, another dairy farmer, has seen the value of cow dung.

“This is a God-sent opportunity. Who knew that you could sell such waste and make money from it?” Okello poses.

Because of the assured market, Okello has added more dairy cows on his farm, and that means more cow dung, and subsequently, more money.

“Imagine if you can collect two wheel barrows of cow dung daily. That is Sh600 which is Sh18,000 in a month and Sh216,000 in a year!’’ he says.

So exciting is the business, now some farmers have even started to combing villages in search of manure and deliver to the factory.

THE PROCESSING

So how are the briquettes processed?

Karia explains that after collecting the cow dung, it is taken through the machine for processing.

Because it contains water, the pellet machine first dries the manure.

After drying, the machine further processes it in the hammer mill, which pulverizes the dried up husks.

The briquette presser applies pressure to the dried manure then converts it into pellets.

EXPERT OPINION

So what are the benefits of using briquettes as opposed to charcoal?

According to a value chain expert Dr Abel Otieno of Bondo University, in this era of global warming, initiatives like that are welcome, because they help in conserving the environment.

He says briquette charcoal is free from chemicals, is smokeless and therefore great for the environment.

“Charcoal products from raw materials like cow dung is great because it has no spark and float dust when burning, making it environment friendly,” says the don.

For dairy farmers who are interested in such value-addition, Dr Otieno says other than manure they can also make briquettes from bagasse, a sugarcane by product and saw dust.

COUNTY SUPPORT

Gilchrist Okuom, the Kisumu County Agriculture Minister says not many locals are aware that manure can be a valuable, recyclable product and an organic fertilizer.

In recent years, he admits, great attention has been given to the use of biomass material as an alternative source of fuel.

Given the potential of manure, Okuom says the county is now encouraging more farmers to keep more dairy cows to boost income.

The official confirmed that the briquette production factory has has created employment for locals and helped encourage more people to rear domestic animals for commercial purposes.